Request for Proposals
Government offices and non-profit organizations involved in public policy development are invited to submit a proposal to engage a team of students in Temple University’s Master of Public Policy (MPP) program in a semester-long project beginning in January, 2021. Proposals should follow the outline summarized in this template. Key dates are:
November 15, 2020: Deadline to email proposals through the link on emailed invitation.
December 1, 2020: Respondents will be notified if their proposal has been accepted.
January 13, 2021: Clients present their projects to their Temple teams.
March 10, 2021: Temple teams present mid-term reports to clients.
April 21, 2021: Temple teams present first draft of their final report to their clients.
May 5, 2021: Temple teams submit any requested revisions to their clients.
Overview
Policy Analysis Projects are a culminating experience of the Master of Public Policy (MPP) program at Temple University. These projects provide students with hands-on experiences that parallel the activities and issues they will encounter in the workplace. Working for a client organization, teams of students, all of whom have signed confidentiality agreements, spend a full semester addressing the client’s issue. Under the direction of a faculty instructor, the students help further define the issue or problem, gather and analyze data, and prepare findings and recommendations for the client. The project provides students with “real-world” experience in teamwork, project management and client relations. It also allows students to integrate the skills learned from their coursework at Temple--including economics, statistics, policy analysis, program evaluation, and others—as they tackle important policy issues.
The project provides benefits to both the students and the client. For the client, projects provide:
the ability to address issues for which current staff may not have the time or expertise
“fresh” perspectives on issues of institutional importance
500 or more hours of pro-bono work by graduate students and their faculty advisor
the opportunity to “preview” prospective employees
Projects might include analyzing policy issues, conducting policy feasibility studies, constructing analytical case histories of successfully implemented policies in other jurisdictions, identifying best practices, developing tools for analyzing future or recurring policy problems, creating strategies for implementation or campaigns for policy change, and evaluating program results.
Questions
Contact Joe McLaughlin if you want to discuss project ideas before submitting a proposal or help in drafting a proposal: joseph.paul.mclaughlin@temple.edu
267 965 1828